Diminutive Daniel Sánchez was a key player for Spanish clubs in international competitions in 2008.

He participated in the MLB European Academy in 2006. Sánchez hit .272/.346/.351 in the 2007 Spanish season for the Marlins Puerto Cruz. One bright spot was his .962 fielding percentage, tied for the best among league second basemen. In the 2007 European Championship, the 19-year-old hit .174/.269/.174. He was better in the 2007 Baseball World Cup, batting .250/.278/.438 and having one of his team's better slugging percentages.

Sánchez was very effective in the 2008 Final Olympic Qualification Tournament for a 1-6 Spanish national team. He hit .250/.333/.625 as Spain's top batter in the event, having a better OPS than their three players with minor league experience. In the 2008 European Cup in Grosseto, Daniel batted .450/.542/.500 with 5 runs in 5 games and 5 steals in 6 tries. He led the Cup in swipes.

Daniel was named the Outstanding Defensive Player in the 2008 European Under-21 championships, helping Spain to a title. He turned 8 double plays and made no errors in 5 games.